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Yang YJ, Pan SC, Lee MR, Chung CL, Ku CP, Liao CY, Tsai TY, Wang JY, Fang CT, Chen YC. Quantifying the contribution of smear-negative, culture-positive pulmonary tuberculosis to nosocomial transmission. Am J Infect Control 2024; 52:807-812. [PMID: 38365178 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajic.2024.02.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2023] [Revised: 02/09/2024] [Accepted: 02/09/2024] [Indexed: 02/18/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Despite current guidelines for tuberculosis (TB) control in health care settings, which focused on smear-positive cases, prevention of nosocomial TB transmission continues to be a challenge. Here, we report the results of the first hospital-wide prospective study applying interferon-gamma release assay to investigate the role of smear-negative, culture-positive index cases in nosocomial TB transmission. METHODS We prospectively identified cases of culture-confirmed smear-negative pulmonary TB receiving aerosol-generating procedures (AGPs) and cases of culture-confirmed smear-positive pulmonary TB admitted at a medical center. Nosocomial transmission was evaluated by screening their close contacts for latent TB infection (LTBI) using an interferon-gamma release assay. RESULTS A total of 93 smear-negative index receiving AGP and 122 smear-positive index were enrolled. Among them, 13 (14.0%) and 43 (35.2%) index cases, respectively, had secondary cases of LTBI (P < .001). Sputum smear negativity (adjusted odds ratio: 0.20 [0.08-0.48]) and AGP (sputum suction; adjusted odds ratio: 3.48 [1.34-9.05]) are independent factors of transmission. A similar proportion in the close contacts of the 2 index groups had LTBI (17 [15.3%] and 63 [16.0%], respectively), and the former index group contributed to 21.3% of the nosocomial transmission. CONCLUSIONS Smear-negative, culture-positive index cases receiving AGPs could be as infectious as smear-positive index cases. Hospital TB control policy should also focus on the former group.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ya-Jen Yang
- Center for Infection Control, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Sung-Ching Pan
- Center for Infection Control, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Internal Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Meng-Rui Lee
- Department of Internal Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Che-Liang Chung
- Department of Internal Medicine, Yuanlin Christian Hospital, Changhua, Taiwan
| | - Chia-Ping Ku
- Center for Infection Control, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Chi-Yu Liao
- Center for Infection Control, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Tien-Yu Tsai
- Center for Infection Control, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Jann-Yuan Wang
- Department of Internal Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
| | - Chi-Tai Fang
- Department of Internal Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; Institute of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, College of Public Health, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan; Population Health Research Center, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan; Ministry of Health and Welfare and National Taiwan University Infectious Disease Research and Education Center, Taipei, Taiwan.
| | - Yee-Chun Chen
- Center for Infection Control, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Internal Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
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Wang CH, Chang W, Lee MR, Tay J, Wu CY, Wu MC, Roth HR, Yang D, Zhao C, Wang W, Huang CH. Deep Learning-based Diagnosis of Pulmonary Tuberculosis on Chest X-ray in the Emergency Department: A Retrospective Study. JOURNAL OF IMAGING INFORMATICS IN MEDICINE 2024; 37:589-600. [PMID: 38343228 PMCID: PMC11031502 DOI: 10.1007/s10278-023-00952-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2023] [Revised: 10/22/2023] [Accepted: 10/23/2023] [Indexed: 04/20/2024]
Abstract
Prompt and correct detection of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) is critical in preventing its spread. We aimed to develop a deep learning-based algorithm for detecting PTB on chest X-ray (CXRs) in the emergency department. This retrospective study included 3498 CXRs acquired from the National Taiwan University Hospital (NTUH). The images were chronologically split into a training dataset, NTUH-1519 (images acquired during the years 2015 to 2019; n = 2144), and a testing dataset, NTUH-20 (images acquired during the year 2020; n = 1354). Public databases, including the NIH ChestX-ray14 dataset (model training; 112,120 images), Montgomery County (model testing; 138 images), and Shenzhen (model testing; 662 images), were also used in model development. EfficientNetV2 was the basic architecture of the algorithm. Images from ChestX-ray14 were employed for pseudo-labelling to perform semi-supervised learning. The algorithm demonstrated excellent performance in detecting PTB (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve [AUC] 0.878, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.854-0.900) in NTUH-20. The algorithm showed significantly better performance in posterior-anterior (PA) CXR (AUC 0.940, 95% CI 0.912-0.965, p-value < 0.001) compared with anterior-posterior (AUC 0.782, 95% CI 0.644-0.897) or portable anterior-posterior (AUC 0.869, 95% CI 0.814-0.918) CXR. The algorithm accurately detected cases of bacteriologically confirmed PTB (AUC 0.854, 95% CI 0.823-0.883). Finally, the algorithm tested favourably in Montgomery County (AUC 0.838, 95% CI 0.765-0.904) and Shenzhen (AUC 0.806, 95% CI 0.771-0.839). A deep learning-based algorithm could detect PTB on CXR with excellent performance, which may help shorten the interval between detection and airborne isolation for patients with PTB.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chih-Hung Wang
- Department of Emergency Medicine, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
- Department of Emergency Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, No. 7, Zhongshan S. Rd, Zhongzheng Dist., Taipei City, 100, Taiwan
| | - Weishan Chang
- Department of Mathematics, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Meng-Rui Lee
- Department of Internal Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Joyce Tay
- Department of Emergency Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, No. 7, Zhongshan S. Rd, Zhongzheng Dist., Taipei City, 100, Taiwan
| | - Cheng-Yi Wu
- Department of Emergency Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, No. 7, Zhongshan S. Rd, Zhongzheng Dist., Taipei City, 100, Taiwan
| | - Meng-Che Wu
- Department of Emergency Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, No. 7, Zhongshan S. Rd, Zhongzheng Dist., Taipei City, 100, Taiwan
| | | | - Dong Yang
- NVIDIA Corporation, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Can Zhao
- NVIDIA Corporation, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Weichung Wang
- Institute of Applied Mathematical Sciences, National Taiwan University, No. 1, Sec. 4, Roosevelt Rd., Taipei, 106, Taiwan.
| | - Chien-Hua Huang
- Department of Emergency Medicine, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan.
- Department of Emergency Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, No. 7, Zhongshan S. Rd, Zhongzheng Dist., Taipei City, 100, Taiwan.
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Zhan M, Xue H, Wang Y, Wu Z, Wen Q, Shi X, Wang J. A clinical indicator-based prognostic model predicting treatment outcomes of pulmonary tuberculosis: a prospective cohort study. BMC Infect Dis 2023; 23:101. [PMID: 36803117 PMCID: PMC9940065 DOI: 10.1186/s12879-023-08053-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2022] [Accepted: 02/03/2023] [Indexed: 02/22/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Identifying prognostic factors helps optimize the treatment regimen and promote favorable outcomes. We conducted a prospective cohort study on patients with pulmonary tuberculosis to construct a clinical indicator-based model and estimate its performance. METHODS We performed a two-stage study by recruiting 346 pulmonary tuberculosis patients diagnosed between 2016 and 2018 in Dafeng city as the training cohort and 132 patients diagnosed between 2018 and 2019 in Nanjing city as the external validation population. We generated a risk score based on blood and biochemistry examination indicators by the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) Cox regression. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression models were used to assess the risk score, and the strength of association was expressed as the hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI). We plotted the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and calculated the area under the curve (AUC). Internal validation was conducted by 10-fold cross-validation. RESULTS Ten significant indicators (PLT, PCV, LYMPH, MONO%, NEUT, NEUT%, TBTL, ALT, UA, and Cys-C) were selected to generate the risk score. Clinical indicator-based score (HR: 10.018, 95% CI: 4.904-20.468, P < 0.001), symptom-based score (HR: 1.356, 95% CI: 1.079-1.704, P = 0.009), pulmonary cavity (HR: 0.242, 95% CI: 0.087-0.674, P = 0.007), treatment history (HR: 2.810, 95% CI: 1.137-6.948, P = 0.025), and tobacco smoking (HR: 2.499, 95% CI: 1.097-5.691, P = 0.029) were significantly related to the treatment outcomes. The AUC was 0.766 (95% CI: 0.649-0.863) in the training cohort and 0.796 (95% CI: 0.630-0.928) in the validation dataset. CONCLUSION In addition to the traditional predictive factors, the clinical indicator-based risk score determined in this study has a good prediction effect on the prognosis of tuberculosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengyao Zhan
- grid.89957.3a0000 0000 9255 8984Department of Epidemiology, Center for Global Health, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, 101 Longmian Ave. Nanjing, 211166 Nanjing, China
| | - Hao Xue
- Department of Chronic Communicable Diseases, Yancheng Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 224002 Yancheng, China
| | - Yuting Wang
- grid.89957.3a0000 0000 9255 8984Department of Epidemiology, Center for Global Health, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, 101 Longmian Ave. Nanjing, 211166 Nanjing, China
| | - Zhuchao Wu
- grid.89957.3a0000 0000 9255 8984Department of Epidemiology, Center for Global Health, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, 101 Longmian Ave. Nanjing, 211166 Nanjing, China
| | - Qin Wen
- grid.89957.3a0000 0000 9255 8984Department of Epidemiology, Center for Global Health, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, 101 Longmian Ave. Nanjing, 211166 Nanjing, China
| | - Xinling Shi
- grid.89957.3a0000 0000 9255 8984Department of Epidemiology, Center for Global Health, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, 101 Longmian Ave. Nanjing, 211166 Nanjing, China
| | - Jianming Wang
- Department of Epidemiology, Center for Global Health, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, 101 Longmian Ave. Nanjing, 211166, Nanjing, China. .,Department of Epidemiology, Gusu School, Nanjing Medical University, 211166, Nanjing, China.
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Ko Y, Min J, Kim HW, Koo HK, Oh JY, Jeong YJ, Kang HH, Kang JY, Kim JS, Lee SS, Park JS, Kwon Y, Yang J, Han J, Jang YJ. Time delays and risk factors in the management of patients with active pulmonary tuberculosis: nationwide cohort study. Sci Rep 2022; 12:11355. [PMID: 35790866 PMCID: PMC9255533 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-15264-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2022] [Accepted: 06/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Estimating the time delay and identifying associated factors is essential for effective tuberculosis control. We systemically analysed data obtained from the Korea Tuberculosis Cohort in 2019 by classifying delays as presentation and healthcare delays of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB). Of 6593 patients with active PTB, presentation and healthcare delays were recorded in 4151 and 5571 patients, respectively. The median presentation delay was 16.0 (5.0-40.0) days. Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that longer presentation delays were associated with neuropsychiatric disease [adjusted odds ratio (OR) 2.098; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.639-2.687; p < 0.001] and heavy alcohol intake (adjusted OR 1.505; 95% CI 1.187-1.907; p < 0.001). The median healthcare delay was 5.0 (1.0-14.0) days. A longer healthcare delay was associated with malignancy (adjusted OR 1.351; 95% CI 1.069-1.709; p = 0.012), autoimmune disease (adjusted OR 2.445; 95% CI 1.295-4.617; p = 0.006), and low bacterial burden manifested as an acid-fast bacillus smear-negative and tuberculosis polymerase chain reaction-negative status (adjusted OR 1.316; 95% CI 1.104-1.569; p = 0.002). Active case-finding programmes need to focus on patients with heavy alcoholism or neuropsychiatric diseases. To ensure early PTB detection, healthcare providers must carefully monitor patients with malignancy, autoimmune disease, or a high index of suspicion for PTB.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yousang Ko
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Kangdong Sacred Heart Hospital, Hallym University College of Medicine, Sung-an ro 150, Kangdonggu, Seoul, 05355, Republic of Korea.
| | - Jinsoo Min
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Daejeon St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Hyung Woo Kim
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Incheon St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Hyeon-Kyoung Koo
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Ilsan Paik Hospital, Inje University College of Medicine, Goyang, Republic of Korea
| | - Jee Youn Oh
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Korea University Guro Hospital, Korea University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Yun-Jeong Jeong
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Dongguk University Ilsan Hospital, Goyang, Republic of Korea
| | - Hyeon Hui Kang
- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Ulsan University Hospital, Ulsan University College of Medicine, Ulsan, Republic of Korea
| | - Ji Young Kang
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Seoul St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Ju Sang Kim
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Incheon St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Sung-Soon Lee
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Ilsan Paik Hospital, Inje University College of Medicine, Goyang, Republic of Korea
| | - Jae Seuk Park
- Division of Pulmonary Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Dankook University College of Medicine, 119 Dandae-ro, Dongnam-gu, Cheonan, 31116, Republic of Korea.
| | - Yunhyung Kwon
- Division of Tuberculosis Prevention and Control, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Cheongju, Republic of Korea
| | - Jiyeon Yang
- Division of Tuberculosis Prevention and Control, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Cheongju, Republic of Korea
| | - Jiyeon Han
- Division of Tuberculosis Prevention and Control, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Cheongju, Republic of Korea
| | - You Jin Jang
- Division of Tuberculosis Prevention and Control, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Cheongju, Republic of Korea
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Qi M, Li PJ, Wang Y, Liang ZA. Clinical features of atypical tuberculosis mimicking bacterial pneumonia. Open Med (Wars) 2021; 16:1608-1615. [PMID: 34746415 PMCID: PMC8552951 DOI: 10.1515/med-2021-0349] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2021] [Revised: 07/28/2021] [Accepted: 08/06/2021] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES The aim of this study is to investigate clinical features of atypical pulmonary tuberculosis (aPTB) mimicking bacterial pneumonia, determine imaging features with the highest degree of correlation, and identify predictors for acid-fast bacilli (AFB) positivity. METHODS The clinical data of 259 patients considered as aPTB were retrospectively analyzed. The correlation of CT patterns was evaluated with Spearman analysis, and the predictors for AFB positivity were assessed with the multivariate analysis. RESULTS The most common symptom of aPTB was cough (84.6%), followed by fever and anorexia (47.1 and 41.7%, respectively). Infiltrated patchy was the most common radiological pattern (84.9%), followed by nodules (3-10 mm), micronodules (<3 mm), and consolidation (79.2, 78.8, and 66.0%, respectively). Nodules (3-10 mm) and micronodules (r = 0.988, p < 0.001), consolidation and air bronchogram (r = 0.590, p < 0.001), and pulmonary atelectasis and consolidation (r = 0.323, p < 0.001) showed high correlation. In the multivariate analysis, hyperpyrexia (OR, 2.29; 95% CI, 1.22-4.29) and bronchiectasis (OR, 2.06; 95% CI, 1.04-4.06) were the predictors of AFB-smear positivity, while bulla (OR, 0.22; 95% CI, 0.05-0.97) was the predictor of AFB-smear negativity. CONCLUSION This study demonstrated the clinical and radiological features of aPTB mimicking pneumonia. Several paired radiological findings may guide us to the diagnosis of aPTB. Hyperpyrexia and bronchiectasis may be helpful for predicting AFB positivity, and bulla may be a predictive sign of AFB negativity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Min Qi
- Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China
| | - Pei-Jun Li
- Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China
| | - Ye Wang
- Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China
| | - Zong-An Liang
- Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China
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Kim HW, Myong JP, Kim JS. Estimating the burden of nosocomial exposure to tuberculosis in South Korea, a nationwide population based cross-sectional study. Korean J Intern Med 2021; 36:1134-1145. [PMID: 33327686 PMCID: PMC8435488 DOI: 10.3904/kjim.2020.144] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2020] [Accepted: 05/01/2020] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND/AIMS The aim of the study was to investigate the current nationwide burden of nosocomial exposure to tuberculosis (TB) using national health insurance claims data. METHODS All patients who had claims for drug susceptibility testing for TB from 2012 to 2016, which indicated culture-proven TB, were included. The first day of the infectious period was defined as 3 months before a doctor's suspicion of TB in patients with respiratory symptoms and 1 month before in patients without symptoms. The last day of the infectious period was defined as one day before the prescription of anti-TB medications. Patients hospitalized during infectious periods were investigated and their hospitalization days were calculated. Records of medical procedures which increased the risk of nosocomial transmission by generating aerosols were also investigated. RESULTS A total of 7,186 cases with 94,636 person-days of hospitalization with unrecognized active TB were found. Patients above 60 years of age accounted for 63.99% of the total number and 69.70% of the total duration of hospitalization. TB patients in the older age group showed a trend toward higher risks for hospitalization with unrecognized active TB. Patients in their 80s showed the highest risk (12.65%). Bronchoscopy (28.86%), nebulizer therapy (28.48%), and endotracheal intubation (13.02%) were common procedures performed in these patients during hospitalization. CONCLUSION The burden of nosocomial exposure to TB in South Korea is still substantial. Hospitalization with unrecognized active TB, especially among the elderly TB patients could be a serious public health issue in South Korea.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hyung Woo Kim
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Incheon St. Mary’s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul,
Korea
| | - Jun-Pyo Myong
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul,
Korea
| | - Ju Sang Kim
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Incheon St. Mary’s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul,
Korea
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7
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Choi H. Nosocomial exposure to tuberculosis: a snapshot of South Korea. Korean J Intern Med 2021; 36:1061-1062. [PMID: 34503318 PMCID: PMC8435486 DOI: 10.3904/kjim.2021.367] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2021] [Accepted: 08/12/2021] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Hayoung Choi
- Department of Internal Medicine, Hallym University Kangnam Sacred Heart Hospital, Seoul, Korea
- Correspondence to Hayoung Choi, MD Department of Internal Medicine, Hallym University Kangnam Sacred Heart Hospital, Hallym University College of Medicine, 1 Singil-ro, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul 07441, Korea Tel: +82-2-829-5731 Fax: +82-2-849-4469 E-mail:
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Paleckyte A, Dissanayake O, Mpagama S, Lipman MC, McHugh TD. Reducing the risk of tuberculosis transmission for HCWs in high incidence settings. Antimicrob Resist Infect Control 2021; 10:106. [PMID: 34281623 PMCID: PMC8287104 DOI: 10.1186/s13756-021-00975-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2020] [Accepted: 07/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Globally, tuberculosis (TB) is a leading cause of death from a single infectious agent. Healthcare workers (HCWs) are at increased risk of hospital-acquired TB infection due to persistent exposure to Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) in healthcare settings. The World Health Organization (WHO) has developed an international system of infection prevention and control (IPC) interventions to interrupt the cycle of nosocomial TB transmission. The guidelines on TB IPC have proposed a comprehensive hierarchy of three core practices, comprising: administrative controls, environmental controls, and personal respiratory protection. However, the implementation of most recommendations goes beyond minimal physical and organisational requirements and thus cannot be appropriately introduced in resource-constrained settings and areas of high TB incidence. In many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) the lack of knowledge, expertise and practice on TB IPC is a major barrier to the implementation of essential interventions. HCWs often underestimate the risk of airborne Mtb dissemination during tidal breathing. The lack of required expertise and funding to design, install and maintain the environmental control systems can lead to inadequate dilution of infectious particles in the air, and in turn, increase the risk of TB dissemination. Insufficient supply of particulate respirators and lack of direction on the re-use of respiratory protection is associated with unsafe working practices and increased risk of TB transmission between patients and HCWs. Delayed diagnosis and initiation of treatment are commonly influenced by the effectiveness of healthcare systems to identify TB patients, and the availability of rapid molecular diagnostic tools. Failure to recognise resistance to first-line drugs contributes to the emergence of drug-resistant Mtb strains, including multidrug-resistant and extensively drug-resistant Mtb. Future guideline development must consider the social, economic, cultural and climatic conditions to ensure that recommended control measures can be implemented in not only high-income countries, but more importantly low-income, high TB burden settings. Urgent action and more ambitious investments are needed at both regional and national levels to get back on track to reach the global TB targets, especially in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana Paleckyte
- UCL Centre for Clinical Microbiology, Division of Infection & Immunity, UCL, London, UK
| | | | - Stella Mpagama
- Kibong'oto Infectious Diseases Hospital, Kilimanjaro, Tanzania
| | - Marc C Lipman
- UCL Respiratory, Division of Medicine, UCL, London, UK
| | - Timothy D McHugh
- UCL Centre for Clinical Microbiology, Division of Infection & Immunity, UCL, London, UK.
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9
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The Accuracy of Emergency Physicians' Suspicions of Active Pulmonary Tuberculosis. J Clin Med 2021; 10:jcm10040860. [PMID: 33669722 PMCID: PMC7922231 DOI: 10.3390/jcm10040860] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2021] [Revised: 02/13/2021] [Accepted: 02/16/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Objective: To investigate factors associated with recognition and delayed isolation of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB). Background: Precise identification of PTB in the emergency department (ED) remains challenging. Methods: Retrospectively reviewed PTB suspects admitted via the ED were divided into three groups based on the acid-fast bacilli culture report and whether they were isolated initially in the ED or general ward. Factors related to recognition and delayed isolation were statistically compared. Results: Only 24.94% (100/401) of PTB suspects were truly active PTB and 33.77% (51/151) of active PTB were unrecognized in the ED. Weight loss (p = 0.022), absence of dyspnea (p = 0.021), and left upper lobe field (p = 0.024) lesions on chest radiographs were related to truly active PTB. Malignancy (p = 0.015), chronic kidney disease (p = 0.047), absence of a history of PTB (p = 0.013), and lack of right upper lung (p ≤ 0.001) and left upper lung (p = 0.020) lesions were associated with PTB being missed in the ED. Conclusions: Weight loss, absence of dyspnea, and left upper lobe field lesions on chest radiographs were related to truly active PTB. Malignancy, chronic kidney disease, absence of a history of PTB, and absence of right and/or left upper lung lesions on chest radiography were associated with isolation delay.
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Collins JM, Blumberg HM. The blueprint for prevention of nosocomial tuberculosis transmission is clear, but why don't we have the will to follow it? Clin Microbiol Infect 2020; 26:970-972. [PMID: 32360777 DOI: 10.1016/j.cmi.2020.04.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2020] [Revised: 04/14/2020] [Accepted: 04/15/2020] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- J M Collins
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - H M Blumberg
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA; Department of Epidemiology and Hubert Department of Global Health, Rollins School of Public Health of Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
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